I remember when NOW with Bill Moyers was a staple on PBS.

And now, it's b-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-ck! And Moyers once again proves why he's the God of Journalism on earth.

I missed the Friday broadcast of NOW, so I had to catch it on repeats on the Rhode Island PBS affiliate last night.

Of course, my blood pressure went right through the roof.

Buying the War, about the follow-the-heard mentality of the press that greased the skids into the U.S. invading and occupying Iraq, made me shake with rage.

Wanna know what's really sick? None of the information is new, nor is it a surprise at this point. Or, it shouldn't be if you've been paying even the smallest bit of attention.

It's seeing it laid out from one end to the other. It's seeing all the whining from the journalists about how "no one called them." (Fuck you, dude! You're supposed to call them, you idiots! — It's called Journalism 101! I had to do it back in the day. Do reporters not pick up the phones any more?) It's seeing the truth being reported in other countries, while pure propaganda was being spoon fed to the populace in ours. It's seeing those self-satisfied smirky talking heads not fucking getting it. They as "journalists" dropped the ball, and we managed to kill an entire country. Fantastic. Good job guys. I won't be forgiving you assholes any time soon.

I have herewith decided to pretend that my Journalism degree is a degree in Mid-19th Century American Literature. I don't want people to assume that I'm incompetent.

How is it possible that the last real reporters in the United States work for Knight Ridder/McClatchy Newspapers? As it turns out, this is the news organization that got it right all along and was calling shenanigans from the start.

But guess who's still got the big television contracts, still on the weenie cocktail circuit, and still making oodles of money for being wrong?

Here's a hint: It's not the ink-stained wretches at Knight Ridder/McClatchy who actually did their fucking jobs.

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In other news, Riverbend of Baghdad Burning has finally thrown in the towel. She announced that she and her family were fleeing Baghdad for either Jordan or Syria (the only countries where Iraqis don't need passports to cross the border). From there, they're going to try to find a country that will take them in.

As conditions have deteriorated in Iraq, Riverbend's posting schedule has gotten increasingly erratic, with sometimes months going by between posts.

Another bright light goes out in Iraq, but at least Riverbend will live on.

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I admit that I thought the Congressional hearings on the lies told around the fratricide death of Pat Tillman in Afghanistan was over-the-top and conducted only because Tillman was famous. However, the House Hearing on Accuracy of Battlefield Information turned out to yield lots and lots of interesting information.

Like how U.S. troops were being used as propaganda parts by the Bush Administration to keep public opinion in line the Iraqi invasion and occupation. To be honest, again, this is not at all news, considering how King George so does love prancing in front of uniformed officers for political purposes. ("Mission Accomplished" anyone?)

By the way, this hearing included testimony from Jessica Lynch, in which she also accused the administration of lying about her situation. For the record, Lynch is accusing the administration of turning her into a hero for propaganda purposes — she denies that she's any kind of hero at all. IMHO, however, anyone who fights to set the record straight — as Lynch has tried to do for years — despite the pressure to keep her mouth shut and accept the hero accolade really is a hero. I'm just sayin'.

In either case, if you want to break your heart, this article on Pat Tillman from Sports Illustrated shows why so many people are fighting to get the truth out about Tillman, and to draw attention to the propaganda games around the Iraqi invasion and occupation.

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More bits and pieces of flotsam:

George Tenet, who's not exactly one of the "good guys" when it comes to the invasion and occupation of Iraq, has released his tell-all book in which he's confirmed that the Iraqi invasion was based on a hill of lies. Again, not new news here at all, but notable for the "who" that's saying it.

Knight Ridder/McClatchy continue to prove how invaluable they are to journalism by reporting that in order to "prove" that violence in Iraq is decreasing, the administration has stopped counting car bombs as acts of violence. So next time your wingnut relatives tell you that Iraq is getting better, you might want to point out that the numbers are improving only because the Bush administration is congenitally incapable of telling the truth...or realizing that the American people actually have brains.

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Anyway, I'll be posting some Bad Art Appreciation Day links up tonight. I got hung up doing a bunch of stuff yesterday and never got to my computer.

Because I love you all, and because I'm easily amused, I declare today: